2013: The Year of the Preorder?

I’m not usually one to preorder games. Limited editions, exclusive preorder costumes… none of that interests me, for the most part. Usually, the only reason I’ll preorder a game is if it’s a title I’ve been looking forward to for a long time and the publisher is offering an exclusive preorder bonus such as a soundtrack or artbook for no additional cost, or if I’m certain it’s going to have a small-print run, as is the case with many Atlus titles.

Well, don’t know what it is about 2013, but all of my most-anticipated titles have been getting great preorder bonuses that I just haven’t been able to pass up. Not only that, but I’ve started to branch out into preordering manga and (dare I say it) figurines, as well, making this the year I’ve preordered the most things to date… and it’s only May!

The first preorder I punked down my hard-earned cash for was a copy of Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titans. As the latest entry in the notoriously difficult dungeon crawling series, I was on board from day one, even though I’d never played an Etrian Odyssey game before. When Atlus announced they’d be providing a bonus music CD and design book with all first edition versions of the game, I quickly caved and put myself down for a copy.

Then Aksys Games had to go and announce another otome game, Sweet Fuse: At Your Side. Since Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom is the only game in recent memory that I’ve actually upgraded to a limited edition for (what can I say, I love my otome games), I was ready to put money on Sweet Fuse the day it went up for preorder on Amazon, no questions about bonuses asked. Hopefully Aksys will announce some kind of extra for those who’ve preordered, but I’m happy to show my support for more localized otome games through this preorder.

Next, I preordered something that wasn’t a game, but still very near and dear to my heart. The item in question is actually a manga by the name of Utsubora, by one of my very favorite manga authors, Asumiko Nakamura. Now, I wouldn’t have preordered this just for the sake of supporting the release of one of her titles in English, especially since I get pretty much all of my manga in Japanese now. Unfortunately, however, the publisher Vertical tweeted that Utsubora was not getting many preorders at all and would subsequently be having a very small print run. Not only that, but they later mentioned that Amazon cut its order in half to account for the lack of preorders! How could I not show my support (and possibly get a very rare manga in the process)? The rest, as they say, is history.

Finally, we come to my latest preorder, which also happens to be the winner of the “strangest thing I’ve preordered in 2013 thus far” award. Rather then explain further, I think I’ll let the following picture speak for itself:

Yep, that’s a Sailor Moon figurine. I’ve never been one to collect figurines, let alone preorder them, but I’ve heard this series, S.H Figuarts, can out of stock very quickly, so I had to make sure I got one for myself. Considering Sailor Moon has had such a huge impact on my life and she was my role model throughout much of my youth, I thought it’d be very appropriate to have a mini Sailor Moon to cheer me on from my desk. Plus, all preorders get bonus faces (apparently they’re interchangable?) and a Luna figurine, as well.

Believe it or not, those four things are all I’ve preordered so far this year, and that’s still leagues beyond the one or two items I’ve preordered in past years! Not only that, but there are many other games I’d love to get, but just haven’t brought myself to preorder yet. The main ones I’m tossing up at the moment are Shin Megami Tensei IV, which comes with a bonus soundtrack and guidebook, and Kingdom Hearts 1.5 HD, which comes with a bonus artbook. Oh, my poor wallet!

I’m slowly amassing quite the Rilakkuma planner collection

I while back I wrote a post about the lovely Hobonichi Techo, a planner that has quite the following in both Japan and overseas. The community aspect of sharing one’s completed pages and swapping ideas on how to fill the immaculately-designed books totally appeals to me, but after some consideration, I came to the conclusion that I probably won’t be jumping on the Hobonichi Techo bandwagon anytime soon. See, I have a different sort of planner obsession…

Since 2010, I’ve made a point of buying a new Rilakkuma-themed planner every year. Not only am I a huge fan of the bear famed for his love of relaxing (I can really relate), but the colorful illustrations and adorable covers have just been too good to pass up. 

As you can see, I own two different sizes (I believe these are the only sizes the weekly and monthly planners come in, but there are also thinner ones that are just monthly planners). The large size is great if you want to write lots of notes and/or have a busy schedule, but I tend to get a little discouraged when I “waste” pages by not writing in them. On the other hand, the smaller size is just a tad too small… it certainly makes it look like I’m a very busy and important person, but it also means my writing can get a bit cramped. As such, I haven’t decided which I like better! If I keep up my tendency to switch sizes from year to year, I’ll be back to a large size next year. 
I’ve always been a fan of cute and colorful stationary – my motto is, if I like looking at it, I’ll be more inclined to use it. And boy, do I like looking at these planners! They never cease to put a smile on my face. 
In the interest personalization, I usually try to decorate the monthly pages with cutouts and stickers. Here are a couple samples from my old planners: 

Each month is themed differently – as you can see, February 2010 had a distinct strawberry theme. The theme carries through to the weekly pages, as well, and generally each week has a different illustration of Rilakkuma or one of his companions floating around somewhere.

The larger sizes also have this monthly planning section that I almost never use, unfortunately. More importantly, look at that Rilakkuma eating a donut! I do believe he’s blushing. 

And of course, it wouldn’t be a Japanese planner without some kind of extra goodies at the back. There are generally a few memo pages, as well as Japanese train line maps (very handy if you live in Japan), a personal info page, and some additional oddities that changes from year to year. Can you guess what the page on the right is?

Well, there you have it. Four years, four planners. Will I buy a Rilakkuma planner for 2014? You can bet on it!

Demo Impressions: Pretty Rhythm: My*Deco Rainbow Wedding

Have you ever tried a game that you were sure you wouldn’t like, only to find out that, lo and behold, you actually enjoyed playing it? I certainly have, and more times than I can count, but today I’m going to discuss the surprisingly fun demo for Pretty Rhythm: My*Deco Rainbow Wedding, a Japanese-only 3DS game that I downloaded on a whim a while back. 

Right from the get-go, I noticed two things: there’s a whole lot of katakana in the title, and this demo has gone to great lengths to put the “pretty” and “rainbow” in Pretty Rhythm: My*Deco Rainbow Wedding.

Now, Pretty Rhythm is actually a series of arcade games from Takara Tommy that has been adapted into both a manga and an anime series. In fact, the beginning of the demo actually transports you into a Pretty Rhythm arcade machine… Anyway, the basic premise of My*Deco Rainbow Wedding is that you’ve been transported into a world where Prism Shows, a unique performance that combines dancing, fashion, and ice skating, are the hight of entertainment (I couldn’t even write that with a straight face). 
Of course, your goal is to become the ultimate Prism Star, but in order to do so you need to use something called a Rainbow Prism to collect seven different Prism Show styles (called “coordinates”). Once you’ve collected all seven, it’s said that you’ll be granted the ability to use the legendary “Rainbow Wedding coordinate,” which will bring the ultimate joy to viewers of the Prism Show. Who in their right mind would name something that doesn’t have anything to do with getting married a “Rainbow Wedding”? Imagine my disappointment when I realized there wouldn’t be any dating sim elements in this game! 
You’re able to create a basic avatar by selecting from a a handful of hairstyles, eyes types, and outfits. My avatar, who I’ve predictably named Anne, can be seen above. 
Every game for girls needs a cute mascot, right? Pretty Rhythm: My*Deco Rainbow Wedding‘s is Mr. Penguin, the toupee-wearing green penguin pictured above. I love how he needs to lift his hair out of the way with his flipper to actually see anything. 
This is just an explanation of how to decorate your Prism Stone (there are a lot of things that start with the word “Prism” in this game, just roll with it) using all the various charms you acquire over the course of the game, which unlocks different outfits for your character. They sure know how to lay on the sparkles! 
Here’s a shot of what applying charms to the Prism Stone actually looks like… It’s pretty straight-forward, you just place your charm wherever you like using the touch screen. 
And here’s a shot of one of the outfits that came out of one of my Prism Stone decorating sprees. I’m embarrassed to admit that the hot pink sparkle motif might be growing on me… 
My score for the skating routine
Now, this leads me to what, believe it or not, is the goofiest part of the game: the rhythm skating portions. After your character is all glammed up, you’ll need to preform a skating routine that consists of some very Sailor Moon-like posing that is executed by repeating a series of button/touch commands a la Space Channel 5. Here it becomes abundantly clear (if it wasn’t already) that this game was made with a younger audience in mind, as the rhythm portions are both incredibly easy and, frankly, a little dull if you’re used to the likes of Theatrhythm Final Fantasy and Rhythm Heaven. But, if you’re like me and get a kick out of magical girl shows aimed at 10-year-olds like Pretty Cure (unrelated to Pretty Rhythm, believe it or not), then you’re likely to get a kick out of this, too. 
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get any shots while I was playing the skating portions, but NiNTENDMiNATi0N has a great video of the whole demo! Just skip to 10:50 if you want to get straight to the skating segment: 
 
So, Pretty Rhythm: My*Deco Rainbow Wedding is my definition of a guilty pleasure, and I came out of the demo… kind of wanting to buy the full game? If the goal of a demo is to get the player wanting more, then they certainly were successful with this one! What began as a silly “I’ll try this for the hell of it” evening quickly turned into a “when and where can I get this?!” Google searching frenzy, and I only have myself to blame. 

If you’re as curious to try the full game as I am, you can import Pretty Rhythm: My*Deco Rainbow Wedding here. Note: As with all 3DS games, the game will only play on Japanese 3DS’s. The game uses furigana, though, and the language is very simple, so it’s a great pick for those who are in the early stages of, or interested in learning, Japanese.

Japan Envy: “MonQlo” Monster Hunter 4 x Uniqlo Apparel

I’m going to go out on a limb and say this recent influx of “Japan Envy” posts is somehow correlated to my upcoming trip to Japan in mid-June. Perhaps that’s because every time I see something to be envious about, I actually get to say to myself “Don’t worry, Anne, you’ll be able to buy/eat/do that in June!”… I’m not sure how healthy this mentality will be for my wallet or my suitcase! Well, I hope you all don’t mind a few more “Japan Envy” posts than normal while I’ve got Japan on the brain.

Today I was browsing Roy Blakely’s blog Kotowari (go check it out!), and I came across his recent post about the newly-announced Uniqlo Monster Hunter 4 shirts and boxer briefs. As a recently-converted Monster Hunter aficionado, there’s no way I could pass up the chance to get one (or more) of these fashionable designs:

I would kill for this shirt.

These are just a few of my favorite designs – there are a whopping 19 different shirts in total along with a bunch of different boxer brief designs, so definitely go check them out for yourself! Also, if you buy two or more shirts and/or briefs, you’ll get one of these t-shirt wearing Felyne keychains:

Adorable! The “MonQlo” series will be available at Uniqlo stores worldwide from May 31st. I hope they aren’t sold out by the time I go to Japan!

March 2013 Cool-B No, Thank You!!! Scans + Wallpapers

I don’t know why, but I haven’t seen a single piece in English on the upcoming BL game No, Thank You!!! since I first wrote about it back in February. Now, I’ll readily admit that its title makes it rather difficult to search for information that actually pertains to the game, but I’m inclined to think that this game may be going under the radar of BL fans in general.

As I wrote in my last post, the game is a PC-only 18+ BL (boys’ love) visual novel that has an interesting twist – it appears to be attempting to tap into the bara, or gay male, audience, as well. My thesis research is actually centered around BL manga that shake up traditional notions of what constitues “BL,” so naturally the idea of mixing BL and bara piqued my interest. When I heard the March 2013 issue of Cool-B, a Japanese magazine for BL games, would feature some new information and illustrations from No, Thank You!!!, I jumped on the chance to learn more!

Please forgive the separate images! The above pictures are of a two-page spread, but I couldn’t bring myself to tear apart the magazine so I could get scans that matched up to make one seamless image. The first half at least looks pretty okay on its own, though, don’t you think?

The second page features some text that describes a little narrative surrounding this Valentine’s Day-inspired scene.

Next is a two-page spread later on in the magazine that details the game further, including a message from developer parade asking fans to be patient and that the game will come out sometime in 2013 (they’ve been advertising No, Thank You!!! since 2011 at least, which is quite a long time for a BL game, I think).

My favorite part of this page has to be the new CG in the bottom-right corner. Seems like there’s quite a food theme going in this game! I can definitely get behind that.

This issue also features the opening scenario of the game, which is that big wall of text you see above. If anyone desperately wants it (or any other pages I have scanned) translated, do let me know! I’d be happy to do so, but I’d much rather know that people want to read it than go to all the trouble to translate it only to find out that no one really cares!

Anyway, the basic premise of the game is that 22-year-old Haru saves a man from being hit by a car, but wakes up with no memories of who he is or what happened. The man, Kouichi Inui (the dark brown-haired older man pictured with Haru in the aforementioned CG), takes Haru back to the bar he owns and offers him a job. Of course, romance ensues! Well, that’s what I imagine, but Haru’s defining feature is that he wants to have sex with any man or woman he finds attractive… I guess amnesia doesn’t effect one’s libido?

No, Thank You!!!’s cheeky amnesiac protagonist Haru

Finally, the magazine also comes with DVD featuring a number of exclusive items such as wallpapers and videos, including some for No, Thank You!!!. I double-checked the No, Thank You!!! website and they haven’t released these wallpapers yet, so I thought I’d share them with everyone. Follow this link for wallpapers of each main character, available in three sizes each. Hope you like them!

Japan Envy: New Pokémomo, Regional Pokémon Goods

I think it’s become pretty apparent by now that one of my favorite subjects for Japan Envy posts is the Pokémon-related merchandise that never makes it out of Japan. Well, I’m happy (or unhappy, depending on how you look at it) to report that I continue to have reasons to envy Japan’s awesome Pokémon merchandise, as two of my favorite Pokémon goods series are getting new lines in the upcoming months.

First is the Pokémon Tōchi, or Regional Pokémon (literally “Local Pokémon”) series. These are designs that are limited to specific areas of Japan, and as such can only be found certain Pokémon Centers. I really like regional goods and am always interested in the unique “local flavor” each city of Japan has, so aside from that creepy Pikachu whose head is far too big for his body, I’m generally all for this kind of series. Here are the newly-released designs:

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From the left to right, the prefectures represented are Kyoto, Nara, Hyogo, and Okinawa. As I mentioned before, something about that Pikachu really doesn’t jive with me, but I think the Meowth and Oshawott designs in particular are very cute. I personally have a special place in my heart for Hyogo prefecture, as that’s where I spent a year when I studied abroad in Japan, so the “weathervane-raiding sailor man” Oshawott (that’s a direct translation of the description! I can’t make this stuff up) definitely speaks to me, but my favorite overall would have to be the pineapple Meowth. Too bad it’s only available in Okinawa.

The new Regional Pokémon goods will be available at the Osaka and Okinawa Pokémon Centers from the end of April, with no end date specified. Available merchandise will include keychains, pens, and hand towels (pictured above), as well as socks, which apparently will go on sale in May.

Next we have the second line in the Pokémomo series, which is a collaboration with illustrator Momo Okada. While it’s hard to beat the first Pokémomo series, as it featured not only Snorlax, but Plusle, Minon, and Gengar, Momo Okada’s weirdly charming Pokémon interpretations just can’t be ignored, regardless of the Pokémon she’s drawing.

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The second Pokémomo series will be available at Pokémon Centers nationwide starting from the 11th of May. I hope they make adult-sized socks, because I know I could totally rock a pair or two!

Memos from Mamemura: Weeks 17-22

Goodness me, I had no idea it’s been over a month since I did a Memos from Mamemura post! Don’t worry, all two of you who follow this series, I haven’t forgotten about my colorful Animal Crossing: New Leaf town. In fact, I’d say I’ve been playing nearly every other day. With the international release less than two months away, I hope to get back into weekly posts starting next week, so do look forward to that! In the meantime, I’ve got a lot of ground to cover…

First thing’s first: Rocky better watch out! If he’s not careful, I might just steal Lobo away…

Doremi and I share a special moment on her birthday.

Easter in Animal Crossing is always a fun holiday, especially if you’re too old to do a real-life egg hunt, but I have to say, Zipper T. Bunny is rather nightmare-inducing! I’m not the only one who thinks he’s more creepy than cute, am I?

Easter eggs can be found scattered around the town. Bring one of the six different designs back to Zipper T. and he’ll reward you with an item from the Easter furniture set. Alternatively, you can eat the eggs, and inside will either be a coupon which you can exchange for a special item, or a piece of candy to eat.

I managed to get Zipper T.’s photo, but I was content with snapping this screenshot and immediately putting it in storage. You can see part of one of the Easter items directly below my character.

It’s always fun to run into villagers outside of the main housing area. But wait! What’s that Lobo’s wearing…?

Why, it’s my Swadloon QR design! There’s nothing more satisfying than seeing villagers wandering around in the clothes you made. Lookin’ sharp, Lobo!

I can’t believe I finally unlocked the ability to build the second floor of the museum! After donating more than 20 items, Blathers will appear to be deep in thought, and you can initiate a conversation with him where he’ll request a second floor. Of course, you’ll have to scrounge up some money to pay for it!

Why did it take me so long to unlock this option? Well, it turns out you not only need to donate 20 different items, but you need to have donated at least one from each of the four categories (fossil, insect, fish, and fine art), as well. I kept ordering items from Redd, but they all turned out to be fakes until now! My word of advice to anyone getting the game in June: buy something from Redd every time he visits your town, or it could take you six months to unlock the second floor of the museum, too! (you need to have the museum to get Brewster’s café, so it’s definitely worth doing)

I found a four-leaf clover! Apparently these are rare, but I don’t think you can do anything with them besides putting them in your hair.

Seeing double?

April Fool’s Day features a strange little game where Blanca the no-face cat appears and turns into each of your villagers to see if you can guess which is the real one and which is the fake. You need to guess based on clues given in the dialogue, so it can be a little tricky if you aren’t paying attention!

No, you can’t write on her face this time

Guess correctly and the villager will be delighted that you knew it was the real them and reward you with their picture. You don’t need to guess every single one correctly to get Blanca’s photo – as long as you play the game with every single member of the town, you’ll get Blanca’s picture in the end. Another creepy photo for the storage bin!

Why, it’s Tom! I’m happy to say he’s the first cat to move into my village.

Cherry blossom season is almost as fun in Animal Crossing as it is in real life! Too bad the villagers don’t hold some sort of flower-viewing picnic (a popular pastime in Japan). Check out my new bench and trendy four-leaf clover accessory!

Okay, if you look at the time stamps, I technically took this one before the last shot, but I never said I did these in order! Here’s a simple picture of my current house. Notice the cherry blossom petals floating by?

I am beyond ecstatic that I found a QR code for the Mister Donut Hello Kitty donuts!

All good things must come to an end… Well, I’m not sure that’s entirely true in this case, as I was never a huge fan of Chuuko! When she said she was ready to see a new village, I decided I wouldn’t stop her, as she isn’t my favorite villager and I always like to see new faces. I wonder who will move in next? 

Why, just when I thought I’d gotten rid of you, Rolf! Apparently villagers that used to live in your town will sometimes come to the shopping district for a visit? This was the first time it’s happened to me! 

Thought this was pretty cute! Arthur and I are being serenaded by K.K Slider.

There it is, the second floor of the museum! I’ll take some screenshots of what’s upstairs once I actually purchase an extra display room to put things in (yes, literally everything costs money in this game…).

Thought this was a pretty great picture of the train going by! I’m pretty sure it’s random.

Seriously, Rolf? This is the second day in a row! I wonder if it’s possible for a villager who used to live in your town to move in again…

Finally, here’s a cute little “wiggle” gif of my adorable Arzuros outfit and my very colorful house! You’ll notice I actually haven’t upgraded my house all that much yet… It’s so very expensive! Let me know what you think of the gif – I might make more in the future if it’s a hit.

I hope you enjoyed this latest Memos from Mamemura installment! As always, feel free to ask questions in the comments!